Six
by TheTitaniumSerpent
Summary: Post-war, post-Hogwarts, adult!Hermione. SS/HG-romance, one-shot. No angst here, just good feels, romance and fluff, and the meaning of number six.


_I'm not Rowling, so I don't own any of the characters, spells or places (but I sure wish I did). English isn't my first language, but the fic was beta-read by the talented and wonderful Sweet Trufflepuff, whom we can all thank for the lack of my usual multitude of colons and grammatical mistakes, as well as improving the flow of the language and writing. Sweet Trufflepuff rocks!_

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While Professor Snape was notoriously observant and rarely missed a thing, he rarely spent time analysing his own life. Obsessive as he was in his thrice-cursed infatuation with the Dark Arts and Lily, his life had always been a deplorable mess. He thought of it as little as he could, preferring to spend his time inventing new ways to improve it... up until his obsessions sent him into the clutches of two megalomaniacs fighting for power and both using Severus as their play piece. By then his time was spent trying desperately to survive and battle the immense guilt piled upon him.

Had he spent time dwelling on his life, he'd have noticed how much the number six influenced him. He never did notice. But we rarely notice these things, and such things would have been especially hard to see in a dark pit of despair that became the life of Severus Snape from a very young age.

Eileen Snape felt the first contractions on the sixth of January, but did whatever she could to delay the labour, going as far as to take a potion to hold the baby back. She suspected - and rightly so – she'd be sent back home with her child after childbirth. She managed to delay the birth by an amazing two and a half days, but couldn't hold out any longer. Severus was born in the early hours of the morning and he drew his first breath at exactly six past six.

His parents never gave him a second name. His conception was an accident, and while his mother named him after her own father, Tobias Snape told his wife that the son of a freak would never carry his first or second name, even if he did have the legal right to his last name. Five letters in his last name, seven letters in the first: twelve in all. He was six hours old before he fed for the first time and six months old when he performed his first accidental magic, though the event was only witnessed by the rat who tried to bite baby Severus in his lonely crib and got transported six miles away. At six years and six months he performed the first purposeful and controlled magic without the use of a wand, disillusioning himself to hide from his father who was hell-bent on giving him another beating.

Lily Evans, his first and only friend, did have a second name. Her name had more than 12 letters but less than 18. Lily told him they meant everything to each other, that they'd always be the best of friends and they'd never let anything get in between them. He wouldn't need any other friends, and nor would she. He believed her. The numbers would have laughed in her face.

Severus was twelve when his father went to prison for manslaughter and he couldn't have asked for a better birthday present. He didn't get the information for his birthday, because his mother didn't have an owl, nor did she bother to find another way to send the news.

When he was deep in thought, his fingers would clutch a quill and he'd automatically scribble a hexagon. He never really paid any attention to the habit, and merely found the shape soothingly symmetrical. He tried to predict his future wife with advanced Arithmancy, though the calculations were notoriously difficult. He borrowed a book from the library, relying on his intelligence. The numbers claimed his wife's first and second names would have twelve letters, which was preposterous because he knew what Lily's name was, and so he abandoned the calculations.

He had to stand six years of bullying at the hands of James Potter and his friends. During their seventh year Potter and his friends were too involved with their girlfriends and their approaching N.E.W.T.'s to bother him, and so he was left six years the Marauders managed to finish what the others had started: creating a very lonely and sad man.

He was eighteen when his parents moved, leaving him behind. He purchased the house at 24, Spinner's End for a mere £6000. He borrowed the Galleons from Lucius, converting them to Muggle Pounds at Gringott's. He paid every Sickle back, though it took him a while. Lucius wouldn't have cared, but Severus hated owing anyone anything.

At the age of 24 he lost his virginity to a woman he met at a local dive. He'd never seen her before, and he never saw her again. She was six years older, though he never bothered to find out. She'd had twelve drinks, more than the six Severus had downed. They fucked in an empty motel room which reeked of neglect and despair. Her blouse had seven buttons, but one had fallen off, and Severus opened the six buttons left before he took her. He left afterwards, precisely at six past midnight, feeling a bit dirty and less satisfied than he thought he should have felt. The woman had been a blonde with a cheap red dye-job.

By that time he'd been teaching at Hogwarts for several years and Lily was dead. His laboratory held exactly 36 cauldrons including doubles, six times six though he never really paid the number any notice. It was what he needed: made of different materials, different sizes, some were specially reinforced cauldrons. If he'd paid any attention, he'd have noticed the twelve stirring rods. There were many, many more such examples. He tended to drink twelve cups of strong tea during the day. The caffeine kept him awake and alert when he slept too little and woke up to nightmares. It turned his already poor teeth yellow, but who'd have cared? He had no one.

In the end he spent six years of teaching the son of his worst nemesis and the woman who told him she'd mean everything to him and then chose his worst enemy instead. And he also taught the girl who'd one day mean everything to him, though neither would have believed if they'd been told. They'd sooner have hexed whoever made such claims and avoided each other like the plague.

It took the work of six Mediwitches and Healers to bring him back to life after the snake attacked him. Six doses of Blood-replenishing Potion during the first few hours, six doses of the strongest antivenin and six months in coma. Meanwhile Potter, Granger and Weasley fought to clear his name and managed to get him an Order of Merlin, 1st class. Of course, Potter, the blithering idiot, also released his memories to the public, causing waves of ridicule and pity. Somehow death seemed preferable for a while.

He was no longer needed, and so he left and isolated himself and brooded. Minerva called it 'moping', but Severus Snape did not mope. He told her he was merely enjoying his new-found freedom and spent his time brewing by owl-order. Minerva called it hogwash. Nevertheless, he visited Diagon Alley as rarely as possible, visiting the apothecary every second month. Six times a year, in fact, until six years had passed since Vol... the Dark Lord had been vanquished.

When the sixth anniversary of Voldemort's defeat was approaching, Minerva finally managed to drag Severus out of his six years in isolation and into a meeting of the Order. The Order was inactive, but they tended to meet twice a year and spent most of the holidays together at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. The meeting took place on the sixth of June, because Mrs Ginny Potter had recently given birth to her firstborn, named with the deplorable and disgusting name 'James'. The very meeting would change his life in ways he could not have imagined, for attending the mostly useless meeting was the now adult Miss Hermione Jean Granger, former know-it-all and shameless swot, with eight letters in her first name and four in her second.

Though the meeting didn't take all that long, Severus found himself lingering behind to observe the fascinating changes time had wrought in the formerly gangly and modest teenager. Maturity had changed her for the better, and Severus found himself harbouring feelings of wistful longing. Hermione Granger the student had been impressive but coltish, slightly insecure and bossy; Hermione Granger the adult was utterly astounding and a force of nature with delightful curves and confidence to spare. She was also feminine in a soft and gentle way, very kind and very, very pretty.

In this meeting he also witnessed the changes in his other former pupils. Miss Granger's confidence and maturity had increased, and so had Mr Ronald Weasley's. Though Severus refused to read the rag which called itself 'The Daily Prophet' and which Severus called 'kindling', he'd been vaguely aware of the attempt of romance between the youngest Mr Weasley and Miss Granger. As it turned out, the two supposed participants were less than enthusiastic about the whole thing. As incredible as the thought seemed to be, Ronald Weasley had also grown up, and was currently trying to speak some sense into his best mate and sister.

"Look, s'pose I'd do that to you and Cho?" Ron Weasley was telling Potter.

"But..." Potter looked guilty, while his ginger-haired wife flushed with rising anger.

"I know you don't, not now, mate, but what if I thought so? It's the same thing, d'you get it? Sure, I liked Hermione when we were younger and she liked me. It didn't work out, mate. Gin, how'd you feel if I'd've tried to push Harry to, say, Cho? That's how it is with me and Sue. 'Mione and me, we're best mates and we'll always love each other, just not like THAT."

Potter was looking reluctant and rebellious, very much like when he'd been at school. Mrs Potter was torn between outrage at the sheer suggestion of her husband paired with whoever this Cho-person was, and wanting to take her husband's side.

"But couldn't you give it another go?" she whined, squeezing her baby to her chest.

"No, Gin," said Miss Granger firmly. "We did try. Several times, in fact, again and again when you asked for it. I know you want us all to be together but it's not going to take away our friendship. Susan isn't a threat, Harry," she implored the boy-who-wouldn't-stop-living. "She's a lovely girl, and she and Ron are well suited."

Mr Weasley beamed at her, pride and gratitude in his blue eyes. He then turned his eyes, now more serious, to his his sister and brother-in-law. "I know you wanted us to be a family together, but that's not happening. I'm with Su now and we're happy. Whoever Hermione chooses had best make her happy or I'll hex him right after she's first hexed his bollocks off, but I'll approve if she's happy. You need to let this go," he told them, clearly trying to be reasonable. He sounded remarkably mature for the red-headed buffoon he'd been during those six long years in his class. War changed people... as did age.

Severus crept away quietly, unwilling to get caught eavesdropping, but spent a few more hours observing the fascinating Miss Granger. When he returned home after six hours, he paced back and forth for a long time in the privacy of his own home, contemplating himself and his future, and more than anything, Miss Hermione Granger.

It took him six weeks and six days to gather courage and arrange a believably accidental meeting with her after observing her quietly to study her routine and learn what he could about what she liked. He managed to ask her for a coffee casually and in a seemingly innocent way, and after a successful first date he asked her out for dinner. Two dates quickly became three dates, during which he advanced slowly and behaved like a gentleman intent on wooing her, and after the third date she lost her patience in a thoroughly Gryffindorish manner and snogged him silly.

It was really quite delightful. Especially when he woke up in bed curled around a delightfully warm and sweet-smelling Hermione Granger, who allowed him to repeat what they'd done last night. All three things they'd done last night, in fact, and a couple of times more just to make sure, and they didn't leave her flat until it was late in the afternoon.

Hermione lived in London, in house number six, flat number twelve, on the sixth floor. Easy to remember, he mused, and paid no further attention to it.

Harry and Ginny Potter and Molly Weasley made six attempts to break their blossoming relationship. Some were simply unannounced blind dates set between Hermione and Ron (inviting them for dinner and then leaving them alone for the entire evening with a meal of sexually suggestive food) and setting one of the more delusional war hero-hunting witches to lure Snape, which resulted in Snape hexing the woman. Molly Weasley was particularly nasty towards Snape, while Harry tried his best to drag up his mother and imply Hermione was nothing more than a substitute. The sixth attempt was a dastardly one, where either Ginny or Harry or both slipped some lust potion into Ron's and Hermione's drinks and set them up again for a private meal. Fortunately, Severus happened to drop by and stopped Hermione before she could taste from her glass. Hermione used her Patronus, a raven now, to call Susan. The next day Harry and Ginny were confronted by a group of very angry people. The event placed a severe strain on the couple's friendship with Ron, Hermione and poor Susan, who'd spent an exhausting night with the potion-addled Ron. The couple finally swore they'd stop their attempts at forced matchmaking. Severus used another term for it.

Susan, however, had been at a very fertile peak at the time, and the lust potion had reacted with the pain potion Ron had taken earlier that night. The combination of ingredients had managed to make him fertile enough to counteract Susan's contraceptive potion, and Susan was now carrying Ron's child. Actually, children, for another pair of Weasley twins would soon join the world. Ron was over the moon with joy, and though the pregnancy surprised Susan, it took her a day and a half before her feet, too, were barely touching the ground. Molly Weasley was ecstatic. Hermione had told Molly flat out she didn't want children right away, and with one or perhaps two children at most sometime in the future (though not with Ron), while Susan would give her two immediately and could probably be persuaded to birth more. Susan was also an excellent cook and housekeeper, a witch who'd make Ron a very happy wizard. Harry and Ginny would never dare defy Molly Weasley or evoke her wrath, and Ron and Susan married quickly but with great cheer and happiness in the backyard of the Burrow.

Severus, though he utterly loathed weddings, did not count his drinks nor the people he met at the Weasley-Bones wedding. He never noticed their attendance lasted exactly six hours and six minutes, or that he drank six drinks, met eighteen people he hadn't met in years and made six promising new contacts. Nor did he count the six long and intoxicating kisses given by Hermione as she practically dragged him home and to their bed for a more enjoyable night.

Severus and Hermione had dated six months and six weeks when he got a call from child services. He hadn't heard anything from his parents since they'd left, but apparently his mother had finally died, leaving behind her husband and a second son Severus had never heard about, called Samuel Snape. Tobias Snape had drank himself to oblivion the very next day and finally crashed his car at high speed, managing to finally rid the world of his obnoxious existence. Samuel, currently aged six, had been a late and unexpected arrival. Even when deprived of their wands and most of their magic, witches lived a long time and were fertile far longer than Muggles, and though Samuel's birth had severely weakened her, the boy had been relatively healthy.

Such was not the case now. Samuel Snape was a severely battered and beaten child. He was underweight, afraid and sullen, a spitting image of Severus at that age. The short time in the system hadn't helped him much, although he'd been much more severely malnourished when he was finally retrieved. Apparently Mrs Snape had somehow managed to wandlessly Confund the child services officials who'd approached the couple with complaints of child maltreatment until her death.

Severus was slightly reluctant to ask for Hermione's help, but she never hesitated. They went to see young Samuel, whom they found sitting on his bunk bed in sullen silence in a room not his own. None of the toys seemed to hold his interest, he was withdrawn and would flinch at any sudden movement.

The Child services were, at first, highly reluctant to surrender the boy to an unmarried brother, a bachelor without a wife and children of his own. Severus had fortunately improved his living conditions from what they'd been at Spinner's End, and Hermione managed to impress the officials with the gentle way she treated young Samuel. Still, the process to get to bring him home took weeks, and they were forced to take a hotel room when the officials wondered how on earth they'd managed to travel such a distance so frequently.

When Samuel was brought to the Snape home, the boy was already much more attached to Hermione than his own brother. Samuel adored her, and the adoration grew as time went by. Severus had to admit the boy had very good taste. Hermione taught him how to read. When he learned, he read as voraciously as Severus and Hermione, and Severus had to protect some of his Darker books with spells and charms to keep them away from his curious fingers. Eileen had left all her magical books at Spinner's End and hadn't taught Samuel anything about magic, perhaps in the vain hope of protecting him.

Samuel had, however, inherited great magical powers, which soon became evident as his confidence grew. He looked at displays of magic performed by both Severus and Hermione with wide-eyed wonder, which soon turned into narrow-eyed contemplation and concentration and then, when he managed to make magic without a wand of his own, to sheer joy. If he kept applying himself, he'd one day be as powerful as his older brother, though Severus sincerely hoped he'd be a lot less dark and traumatised.

They'd been dating for one year and six months when Severus finally collected his courage and proposed to her. He picked a ring from the Prince vault, a ring with a diamond and five emeralds, and received twelve delighted kisses before they retired for the night and spent the next six hours making love, on and off. Samuel spent the night with Ronald and Susan Weasley, who adored the little boy. Susan spoiled him quite silly, but the rake-thin boy didn't seem to get enough of her pastries and sweets.

They married six months after the proposal. Forty witches and wizards were invited, but due to scheduling conflicts thirty-six attended the wedding, although dozens more would have loved to attend the wedding of the (in)famous couple. Kingsley bound them in matrimony, and Minerva cried big, fat tears of happiness. She barely spoke with the portrait of Albus Dumbledore these days, too infuriated by the deception he'd put them through and how his plots had cost so many lives.

They agreed to have one child. Severus did not enjoy changing nappies, but he utterly adored their daughter Serena with her cloud of black, bushy curls. Unfortunately Serena married Ronald and Susan Weasley's son and produced a Weasley-worth brood of five children, all of whom needed their nappies changed by grandpa Severus at one point or another, and so Severus Snape ended up swaddling red-haired relatives with an exasperated but content smirk on his face. Very few people would dare call it a smile – he suspected none but Hermione would dare to open their mouths – but privately he had to admit it was a far cry from the malicious smirks and grimaces of the Professor Snape who'd once taught at Hogwarts.

His daughter and all his grandchildren learned Potions privately from him before they went to Hogwarts, and many of them became immensely talented potioneers later in life. They knew Grandpa Severus was a strict but fair man in front of a cauldron, tolerating no nonsense and correcting each small error quickly and mercilessly. After the potion was done, he became, once again, their beloved grandpa Severus, who brought them to granny Hermione. Gran always had fascinating stories to tell and a warm hug to give, and she'd always kiss grandpa Severus gently while all the boys and the younger girls grimaced and the older girls giggled.

The six children married in their turn, producing twelve children in total, and so the Snape-family began to branch out and connect with the rest of the families in Britain as well as abroad. Samuel Snape married a witch of his own and became the Headmaster of Hogwarts in turn.

And on their sixtieth wedding anniversary Severus and Hermione Snape celebrated their love surrounded my family and friends. Severus had more grey hairs than Harry Potter did, but Harry had acquired bald spot and a small pouch on his belly. Ronald Weasley, who twirled his wife Susan around as if she were still a young girl, had a bald spot even larger than Harry did, and Hermione's brown hair had also turned grey. Severus tolerated a kiss on the cheek from his daughter, before she pulled her husband away and rushed to greet old Arthur Weasley and his frail wife Molly. George and his son detonated some fireworks that spelled the number 60 into the sky, along with the initials SS and HG surrounded by a pink heart. The pink heart, out of all the colors available, made Severous scoff as he held his wife closer.  
If Severus had spent time dwelling on his life, he'd have noticed how much the number six influenced him throughout all the years. He never did notice... but we rarely notice these things. Especially in the later life of Severus Snape, because frankly, by then he had much better things to do.

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_*A quick note: "Tobias" as Snape's second name is fanon and not canon, so I've left it out. Of course it, too, would have fit the pattern of six :D_


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